A Florida teenager died Saturday night after killing his parents and wounding a sheriff’s deputy in a shootout, according to the Hillsborough County Sheriff’s Office.
Just after 11pm on Saturday, June 15th, police were dispatched to a residence in Tampa for a report of a shooting.
According to police, the caller, later identified as Rebecca Ann Themeris, 48, said her husband, Christos Byron Themeris, 51, had been shot. During the call with the dispatch center, several more shots were fired, police said.
When officers arrived on scene, they found the suspects, Christos Alexander Themelis Jr., 19, and Rebecca Themelis, outside the home.
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Hillsborough County Sheriff Chad Chronister said his department is investigating how a “mentally unstable” boy obtained a gun and killed his parents and injured a deputy. (Hillsborough County Sheriff’s Office)
Authorities said the suspect then shot the mother in the back of the head and then fired at police officers, wounding one in the leg.
“The monster we encountered tonight not only injured our deputy, but killed his parents,” said Sheriff Chad Chronister. “Our deputies responded to a scene of chaos and quickly put themselves in danger to protect the community. Without their swift and skillful response, the entire community would have been in danger.”
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Authorities said the Hillsborough County Sheriff’s Office is investigating the circumstances surrounding the shooting, in which a suspect shot and killed two parents and injured a deputy. (Hillsboro Sheriff’s Office)
Authorities said the boy barricaded himself inside the home and later died from his injuries.
Chronister said the injured deputy is in stable condition.
“Please keep him and all the officers involved in last night’s shooting in your thoughts and prayers,” Chronister said in a post on X.
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Deputy Sheriff Shane McGough, 26, was wounded in a shooting in Tampa on Saturday night. (Hillsborough County Sheriff’s Office)
The investigation into the deadly shooting continues.
Chronister said sheriff’s deputies had been called to the home 10 times before the fatal shooting, mostly for mental health services and violence against the parents.
Chronister added that a risk protection order was also issued against the 19-year-old and that police had seized his guns. The boy was deemed “mentally unstable” and investigators were looking into how he obtained the gun he used to kill his parents.
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“I don’t know, and I probably never will know, exactly why he became so violent, but I do know that causing injury or harm to another human being, whatever the reason, is never acceptable. Period,” Chronister said.
